The Best Things Are Simple
by spazmoid
Summary: <html><head></head>They were spoken in a low tone, almost a whisper. Still, the words managed to slice the air. Craig looked at his feet. "Because I can," Craig said in a deadpanned and simple reply.</html>


Kenny had been sitting outside the school steps for a while before he was tripped over. He was lucky he had not fallen down the steps and received a concussion from the blue canvas sneakers. He wished he could say the other guy was just as lucky, but he had yelped cursing when he had tripped over Kenny and was sent crashing into a mound of snow. The blond's brow was raised as he pulled himself back up straight looking over at the mound of snow bits of blue poking out from under the white. For a moment Kenny had thought he was really dead, but then he heard more cursing as the other pulled himself up to his feet.

Kenny was holding back a laugh at the disheveled appearance of the other boy. He had thought his mirth was well-hidden, but apparently it was not. His laughing blue eyes met a glare and the hint of a scowl on the other's usual passive expression. "What the fuck are you looking at?" Kenny let out a small laugh at that which only seemed to irritate Craig even more. He was given the middle finger as the other reached out to fix his chullo with his other hand. "What are you sitting out here for anyway?" Craig said in an "I really could not give a fuck" manner. You could even label it as "I am only asking because you piss me off."

Kenny was still very openly staring at the other as he continued to sit thinking over the question. He moved his tongue against the roof of his mouth and to his teeth to make a small clicking sound muffled by his hood. "I'm celebrating," he finally said wondering if the other could understand him through his parka. He decided to stop staring at the noirette as he turnt his attention to white streets and icy flagpoles instead.

Craig had finished fussing over the hat as he glared a bit at the seat beside him before shrugging as if he had nothing better to do than sit beside him. He had pulled one of those bubble gum cigarettes from his pocket. He lit it, sugary smoke emitting from the end. "Celebrating what?" he asked nonchalantly.

Kenny smiled through his hood hoping that the fake smile made his false cheer real. "My birthday," he said with a slight hum looking at the sky rather than the person beside him. He was met with silence and thought just maybe the other had decided he wanted to leave rather than secretly sulk with the blond.

"Where are your friends?" he finally heard the other say. Craig was the one staring now as he chewed on the fake cigarette which was now completely in his mouth. He chewed it into mush making a small bubble with it before Kenny reached over popping it. Craig made a small face brows furrowing in frustration as he glared at the other still waiting for his answer. "Well?" he asked. His patience was wearing thin on waiting for the blond to answer.

"Stan had this family thing, Kyle has this school thing, and Cartman is working on a new plan to kill off the Jews," Kenny hummed hearing more bitterness in his voice than he intended. He struggled to continue swallowing the hurt he was hiding. "Butters is grounded, my parents could care less, and Karen said she had go out and buy me a present because she just got the money." Kenny had smiled a bit at the thought of his sister ignoring the pestering question on where she had got the money in the first place.

Craig was looking at him still blowing sugary bubbles as Kenny talked. His face looked impassive, but every now and then Kenny had thought he saw his brows furrow. Unsure what to make of it, he ended up staring at his own feet. "Want to go to the arcade?" Craig suddenly said standing up.

Kenny glanced up raising a brow in curiosity. "What?" he said thinking he might have misheard just for a second.

Craig glared down at him irritated he had not been heard the first time. "Arcade?" he said slowly simplifying the question as he held out a hand to help the other up. Kenny accepted standing up and nodding a bit. He actually had never been to the arcade before, but he decided not to mention it. Craig seemed annoyed enough with him already.

Craig was still tugging his hand as if he had forgotten about it as he pulled them to the sidewalk. The thought of saying something only flitted Kenny's mind, but he got caught up looking curiously at the things he passed. He had never really been on this part of town. He had always thought all these shops were closed. Now that the sky was getting a bit dark he could see bits of lights peeking from windows of the various stores. They slowed as they neared a dull looking building. Craig glanced back to see if Kenny was still behind him before shoving the door open with his free hand.

Kenny was drawn in immediately at the dancing lights and sounds the place already exciting him a bit. He had to admit this seemed more fun than the other made it look. Craig snorted at the expression he could see through Kenny's eyes. It reminded him a bit of a kid in a candy store. "What game do you want to play first?" he asked drawing Kenny from whatever trance he was in.

Kenny pulled down his hood now that he was inside eyes still flitting around before meeting Craig's. He was smiling having decided to forget momentarily all about his friends neglecting him on his birthday. He should enjoy himself, and some free games would not hurt anyone. He put a finger to his lips as if thinking. "Dance Dance Revolution," he finally said loving the idea already. Yes. That was definitely the game he wanted to play. He was already resisting the want to bounce on his toes as he waited for the other to agree.

Sadly his wish was denied when Craig replied promptly with a "Fuck no." Kenny had blinked, then pouted. He looked at Craig daring him to turn away feigning heartbreak. Craig had stared at that expression unable to say a word. He inwardly cringed before nodding a bit looking off to the side. "... Fine," he said begrudgedly. Kenny had made a small noise in happiness before dragging Craig to the machine. They wove past various games and people before reaching the bright machine. The usual kid who was on it had probably left on a bathroom break giving them both a chance to play. Kenny was still grinning in that stupid manner of his as he shrugged off his parka. He threw it over the bar before hopping over it. Craig did the same with his hoodie tugging it over his head and onto the bar. He swung his leg over the bar followed by the rest of his body as he slid to the brightly lit circle in the middle. He was already somewhat regretting doing this as Kenny shifted through the songs as if wondering what to play.

"What song?" he asked briefly eyes scanning the various music selections. Craig looked with him saying stop when he thought he saw a decent song. Kenny raised a brow. "Jump Rope?" he said with a snort.

"I like it," Craig said giving him the middle finger. He had no reason to justify his taste in music. For all he cared Kenny could go off and hang out with someone who did. His irritation did not seem to bother Kenny this time as he shrugged clicking on the song. The neon arrows lit the screen as both boys began following the directed movements. Craig would never admit it, but he might have been having the slightest bit of fun playing the game. He glanced over at the other rolling his eyes and snorting as Kenny showed off a bit doing little things Craig would never bother trying to do himself. He saw no need in complicating the already pretty hard game.

Kenny let out a laugh as they finished cheering as he won grinning over at Craig blond hair sticking to his face from sweat. "You're not as bad as I thought you would be," he said hopping back over the bar landing almost perfectly. Craig was already giving him the middle finger again as he slid over the bar in the same fashion he had originally done. Kenny might have been agile enough to jump over it like it was the easiest thing in the world, but he did not even want to try.

He was unprepared when he felt arms around his waist, passive expression wavering momentarily in his surprise. He cursed silently before glaring up at mirthful eyes. "Just helping you down," Kenny said with a shrug not mentioning that he thought the expression on Craig's face was the most amusing thing he had seen all day.

"Whatever," Craig muttered too busy grabbing his hoodie to show Kenny his favourite finger again. "You want something to eat?" he said walking to a Pacman machine. He inserted some quarters as he waited for Kenny to answer already starting playing. Kenny watched amused deciding it was best not to surprise the boy again. He hummed noticing that Craig occasionally bit his lip unconsciously whenever he was in a tough spot in the game.

"Of course," he replied in an annoyingly sing-song voice. He waited a while, but he heard no response. He leant over the machine still watching as Craig was completely immersed in the game. He wondered if the noirette even knew he was still there. He decided to test the theory by sliding his arms around the other's waist and resting his head over the top of his head as he continue to watch him play. He struggled not to laugh as Craig did not seem to notice at all.

Craig finally managed to pull himself away from the game turning around mouth open as if to say something before letting out some muffled noise of surprise as he saw Kenny was directly behind him. He cursed shoving Kenny off of him hoping whatever heat he felt on his face was imaginary and only in his head. He told himself he was pissed off instead of flustered despite the annoying fast pace of his heart. "What the fuck are doing?" he asked his annoyance showing in the statement despite the monotone it was spoken in.

"Mmm," Kenny hummed turning on his heel. He sensed if he tried to verb his reasons Craig would not hesitate to knock him flat on his back. He decided it was enough he got to see that look on Craig-Motherfucking-Tucker's face. He bet if he had a camera he could have even used it as blackmail. He smirked at the idea glancing back to see Craig had calmed down and was following him. Kenny did not know the layout too well, but he could follow the scent of hot dogs and nachos.

It was not long before they were in front of the cashier ordering food. Craig ended up getting them both hot dogs just because Kenny insisted and nachos. He slid down in a booth handing Kenny his hot dog. "I don't even want to know how you talked the cashier into giving us free drinks," Craig said with a snort.

Kenny has just began his hot dog, trying his best not to appear as hungry as he actually was. He looked up when he heard Craig talking to him. He hummed licking his lips just in case there was ketchup there. "I'm a great smooth talker if you haven't noticed," he said blue eyes lighting up as he spoke. A grin was on his face as he looked back down to his food.

Craig only rolled his eyes and started on his nacho. The rest of the time passed pretty quietly except when Kenny would make a joke, and Craig somehow found it amusing holding back a small smile. He only managed to eat half of his food; Kenny succeeding in snatching the other half away when he was not looking. Craig was sipping on his drink when they both stood up. Kenny stretched on his toes in an overly exaggerated manner as he walked next to Craig humming the tune to one of the video games.

"Hey Craig."

Craig looked up from his drink. He had been enjoying the peaceful silence they had had once leaving the arcade. Kenny had been unbelieveably quiet, an unfamilar look on his face. Craig had been ignoring it for the past fifteen minutes, but now that said face was calling for his undivided attention. He bit down on his straw slightly and unnoticeably unless you were watching. He raised a curious brow at Kenny rather than say anything.

Kenny was quiet for several minutes as if he was thinking. Craig thought he saw hands pull his hood tighter around his head, but the movement was so slight t could have been the wind. Kenny was not looking at him, face looking farther up the road. "Why did you do this for me?"

If the wind had been any stronger, Craig never would have heard the words Kenny said. They were spoken in a low tone, almost a whisper. Still, the words managed to slice the air. Craig looked at his feet. "Because I can," Craig said in a deadpanned and simple reply. He knew this was not the answer Kenny expected as he stared at him blankly. Craig refused to offer anything more as he pulled his gaze to the same direction as Kenny's.

"Thanks then," Kenny said with a hum and a light laugh. "Best day of my fucking life," he said not biting back any honesty in the words. Craig almost wished he had, the way they made him feel something ridiculous. He forced himself to keep looking ahead and not say the words that were on his own mind.

This had to be the best day of his life too.


End file.
